A deeper look at the 10 plagues

The 10 plagues were represented in the movie "The Ten Commandments" and we may think we know them. However, may we be missing some details and lessons from the Christian life? 

The nation of Israel was cruelly enslaved in Egypt, and God called Moses and his brother Aaron to appear before Pharaoh and demand that he let go of God's people.

But God knew it would take more than that to convince the stubborn Egyptian king. He used Moses and Aaron to demonstrate their power and to warn them of a series of plagues to come. (All of this can be read in the first part of the book of Exodus.) 

Plague # 1: Water turned to blood

"Thus says the Eternal: By this you will know that I am the Eternal: behold, I will strike with the rod that I have in my hand the water that is in the river, and it will become blood" (Exodus 7:17).

Moses attacked first with blood, as it were, piercing the heart of one of the most revered pagan gods in Egypt, Khnum, god of "the waters" (the Nile). The other plagues were also against the Egyptian gods, directly or indirectly. Miraculously God turned the waters of the Nile River into blood, killing the fish, making the waters stink and the Egyptians unable to drink from it.

This miracle was done through Moses and Aaron.

Exodus 7:19: “And the Eternal said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Take your rod, and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over its rivers, over its streams and over its pools, and over all its reservoirs of water, so that they become blood, and there is blood throughout the region of Egypt, both in the wooden and in the stone vessels.”  

God used Aaron's rod to turn the waters outside the Nile into blood as well.  

The Egyptian sorcerers apparently did the same by playing with their hands (v. 22). Therefore Pharaoh's heart hardened.

Plague # 2: Frogs

“And if you don't want to let him go, behold, I will punish all your territories with frogs. And the river will raise frogs, which will rise and enter your house, in the chamber where you sleep, and on your bed, and in the houses of your servants, in your town, in your ovens and in your troughs. And the frogs will go up on you, on your people, and on all your servants”(Exodus 8: 2-4).

This frog epidemic attacked the pride of the Egyptians for the ancient god Heket, who was represented by a frog-headed woman. She was a goddess of fertility.

Egyptians appear to have been the target of this plague. "The order of the words in the Hebrew text is important because it shows how this plague was intentionally directed at Pharaoh:" And the frogs will rise upon you, upon your people, and upon all your servants "(Notes from the Bible of Albert Barnes). 

Let's see again the intervention of Aaron: "And the Eternal said to Moses: Say to Aaron: Stretch out your hand with your rod over the rivers, streams and ponds, so that he can raise frogs over the land of Egypt" (Exodus 8: 5 ).    

And again the tricks done by the sorcerers seemed to be equivalent to this miracle - but they couldn't kill the frogs. After this Pharaoh gave the first hint of softening his heart (v. 8). His repentance was fleeting, and he hardened his heart as soon as God removed the frogs (v. 15).

Plague # 3: Lice

"Then the Eternal said to Moses: Say to Aaron: Extend your rod and strike the dust of the earth, so that it becomes lice throughout the land of Egypt. And they did so; and Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and struck the dust of the ground, which became lice, both in men and in beasts; all the dust of the earth became lice in all the land of Egypt ”(Exodus 8: 16-17).

This was done again, through Aaron's rod.

On this occasion “And the sorcerers did so as well, to remove lice with their enchantments; but they could not ”(v. 18). From this moment on, the efforts made by the sorcerers to imitate the plagues were unsuccessful. Concerning Pharaoh's heart, "he hardened himself, and did not listen to them, as the Eternal had said" (v. 19).

Plague # 4: Flies

God warned Pharaoh, “For if you do not let my people go, behold, I will send all kinds of flies on you, on your servants, on your people and on your houses ; and the houses of the Egyptians will be filled with all kinds of flies, and also the land where they are ”(Exodus 8:21).  

The Hebrew word for "all" ( ' a ro b , Hebrew Lexicon Brown-Driver and Briggs ) may refer to a "mixture" of insects, which is one of their definitions. 

Or they may have been "all kinds" of a particular insect, suddenly one that the Egyptians adored. " Khepri ... was associated with the scarab, being one of the most famous insect gods."

This was the first plague sent directly by God, neither Moses nor Aaron intervened with their rods. God also protected the Israelites, "And on that day I will separate the land of Goshen , where my people live, so that there are no flies in it, so that you know that I am the Eternal in the midst of the land . And I will put redemption between my people and yours. Tomorrow will be this sign ”(Exodus 8: 22-23).  

Pharaoh's heart momentarily softened. "Pharaoh said: I will let you go so that you may offer sacrifices to the Eternal your God in the desert, provided you do not go any further; pray for me ”(Exodus 8:28). Of course, Moses rejected this offer and Pharaoh's stubbornness returned as soon as the flies were eliminated.

Plague # 5: Cattle

"Behold, the hand of the Eternal will be on your cattle that are in the field, horses, donkeys, camels, cows and sheep, with a very serious plague" (Exodus 9: 3).

The Egyptians adored many of these animals. (The Israelites probably derived the idea of ​​the golden calf from there.) So they must have seen the sacrifices of these animals as an abomination by the Israelites (Exodus 8:26).  

This was the second consecutive miracle that God performed alone. And again, God said: "And the Eternal will make a separation between the cattle of Israel and the cattle of Egypt, so that nothing dies of all that of the children of Israel" (Exodus 9: 4).  

Despite all this, none of this made Pharaoh change his attitude. "But Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he did not let the people go" (v. 7).

Plague # 6: Ulcers

“And the Eternal said to Moses and Aaron: Take handfuls of ash from an oven, and Moses will scatter it towards heaven before Pharaoh; and it will become dust over all the land of Egypt, and it will produce a rash with ulcers in men and in beasts throughout the land of Egypt ”(Exodus 9: 8-9).  

Let's see how God performed this miracle — they both took ashes from an oven. But Moses was the only one who scattered them in the air. God returned to work through Moses and Aaron.

Unlike the previous two plagues, God's personal protection for the Israelites is not explicitly announced in the first person. However, it is safe to say that they were still under his protection.

Paul explains that in the long run, God expects everyone to repent (1 Timothy 2: 4) —even those whom He has chosen to harden for a greater long-term purpose. Pharaoh's stubbornness is described differently: "But the Eternal hardened Pharaoh's heart" (verse 12). God promised that He was going to do that, according to the plan that He had (we will delve into this later).

Plague # 7: Hail

"And the Eternal said to Moses: Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that hail may come in all the land of Egypt on men, and on beasts, and on all the grass of the field in the country of Egypt" (Exodus 9 : 22). This is the first miracle that is performed only through the rod of Moses (v. 23). Israel's protection is mentioned as a historical fact, rather than an enthusiastic statement by God (v. 26).

The Egyptians had greater control to protect themselves from this plague. God warned them, “Send, therefore, to gather your cattle, and all that you have in the field; for every man or animal that is in the field, and is not gathered home, the hail will fall on him, and he will die "(v. 19). Despite everything, incredible as it may seem, after having suffered the previous six plagues, some did not pay attention to this warning. Likewise, in the end times man's rebellion against God is going to be incomprehensible (Revelation 9: 18-21).  

God was using Pharaoh to teach an important lesson. "And indeed I have appointed you to show you my power, and that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth" (Exodus 9:16). Paul quotes this passage in Romans 9:17. Paul also explains that in the long run, God's desire is for everyone to repent (1 Timothy 2: 4) —even those whom He has chosen to harden for a greater long-term purpose.  

Plague # 8: Locusts

"And if you still refuse to let it go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts on your territory" (Exodus 10: 4).

Protection of the Israelites is not mentioned in this plague. However, once again the Egyptians were the goal: "And it will fill your houses, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians" (v. 6). Protection for the Israelites did not have to be repeated or mentioned each time for them to receive it.     

This was the second miracle that was performed only through the rod of Moses (vv. 12-13).

And although Pharaoh was still stubborn, at the same time his efforts toward repentance seemed to increase, “I have sinned against the Eternal your God, and against you. But now I beg you to forgive my sin only this time ”(vv. 16-17).

Plague # 9: Darkness

"The Eternal said to Moses: Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there will be darkness over the land of Egypt, so much so that anyone will touch it" (Exodus 10:21).  

Blocking sunlight directly attacked one of Egypt's most cherished gods — Ra, the sun god.

This was the third plague that was directed only by Moses. God told him to extend "his hand" (it is not clear if the stick was in his hand). Again, the protection of Israel is mentioned in the past tense.

Pharaoh manifested temporary repentance again, but asked the Israelites to leave their sheep and cows behind. Moses of course rejected this request and God hardened Pharaoh's heart again (vv. 24-27).

"And Pharaoh said to him, Withdraw from me; be careful not to see my face anymore, because on any day you see my face, you will die. And Moses answered: You have said well; I will no longer see your face ”(Exodus 10: 28-29).

And Moses never saw Pharaoh again.

Plague # 10: Firstborn

"So Moses said," The Eternal has thus said: At midnight I will go out through the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting on his throne, to the firstborn of the servant behind the mill, and every firstborn of the beasts ”(Exodus 11: 4-5).

This was the third plague in which only God intervened. And for the third time, God manifests that Israel would not be affected - "But against all the children of Israel, from man to beast, not a dog will move its tongue, so that you know that the Eternal makes a difference between the Egyptians and the Israelites ”(V. 7). So this statement was only used when God directly, without any mediation was going to release a plague. However, when God worked through Moses and Aaron (as in plagues 6-9), the Israelites seemed to be protected.  

Before the tenth plague, God established the feast of the Passover and promised to save the Israelites by painting the frame of their doors with the blood of lamb — announcing the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.   

After the ninth plague, there is no record of Moses seeing Pharaoh until Exodus 11: 8: "And he came out very angry from the presence of Pharaoh." Later, after the firstborn were killed, Pharaoh " called Moses and Aaron by night" (Exodus 12:31). But it does not say that Moses showed up. As Moses prophesied, Pharaoh never saw him again (Exodus 10:29).

By faith, Moses kept the Passover

Hebrews 11:28 explains: "By faith he celebrated the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that he who destroyed the firstborn would not touch them."

Faith is one of the Christian lessons that must be internalized throughout the 10 plagues. James 2:20 says: "But do you want to know, vain man, that faith without works is dead?" Do we have the faith to keep God's instructions and His commandments? If not, then our faith is dead. What would have happened if Moses, Aaron, and Israel had ignored God's orders and taken care of protection?

God still makes a difference between spiritual Israelites — those who submit to His will and laws — and spiritual Egypt. When we humbly submit to God, He endorses the results — He always does his part. This is one of the great lessons to be learned from the 10 plagues.